THE speed of vaccinations could make it possible for face-to-face classes to gradually resume this year, according to the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda).
In his presentation at the 42nd National Conference of Employers on Wednesday, Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Karl Kendrick T. Chua said 8.4 million vaccines have already been administered and the government has begun the vaccination for the A4 category or economic frontliners.
Chua hopes this will lead to greater confidence and allow further reopening of the economy especially with the arrival of 30 million more vaccines. He noted that vulnerable Filipinos such as senior citizens and persons with comorbidities have already been vaccinated.
“We can all work out the gradual opening of face to face this year, especially since we can achieve much in vaccination,” Chua told BusinessMirror on Wednesday via Viber.
“If health workers, seniors and parents who work are vaccinated, then children going to school is safer. That is why it is important to accelerate our vaccination of A1 to A4,” the Neda Chief added.
Chua, in his presentation, said a total of 6.25 million Filipinos have received their first dose of the vaccine while 2.15 million have received their second dose.
The data he shared, which was as of June 20, showed that 1.57 million health workers have received their first jab and 1.067 million received their second dose of the vaccine.
He added that over 2 million Filipino seniors and those with comorbidities received their first dose of the anti-Covid-19 vaccine. Data showed 2 million seniors and 2.09 million Filipinos with comorbidities received their first vaccine doses.
Chua said over half a million seniors and persons with comorbidities received their second dose as of June 20 this year. Half a million economic frontliners have also received their first dose while less than 100,000 of indigents or A5 have received their first jabs.
The Department of Health (DOH) earlier reported that Covid-19 cases in Metro Manila or the National Capital Region (NCR) posted a “very slow decline.”
As of June 14, the DOH reported that new cases in NCR reached 832, placing the region second only to Calabarzon which had 940 new cases.
“Since NCR cases have gone down a lot and are roughly the same as in October when we opened the economy, then yes, there [can be] opening but subject to vigilance against the newer variants,” Chua told BusinessMirror.
The national government remains confident that the economy can register growth of 6 percent this year and 7 percent next year.
Chua noted that the lessons gleaned from the closure of 70 percent of the economy will allow the country to recover from the pandemic this year.
He said the government has a P2-trillion recovery package composed of cash and non-cash tools including Bayanihan 1 and 2; the CREATE law; FIST to address liquidity problems of firms; GUIDE to address insolvency problems; and the 2021 national budget.
The Neda Chief said the Build, Build, Build program will also contribute to the recovery. Earlier, Chua said over 3,000 infrastructure big and small projects under the Public Investment Program will be completed by next year.
Chua said 314 of the projects have already been completed as of June 2019 and 2,800 are set to be completed by 2022. These projects are part of the medium-term Public Investment Program (PIP) of the administration.
He explained that the majority of the infrastructure projects being undertaken by the administration are “small-scale” and are largely locally funded infrastructure works.
The number of projects expected to be completed by next year still does not include the flagships or the game-changing infrastructure projects of the administration.
These projects, including the 112 infrastructure flagship projects (IFPs), comprise the PIP. The government intended to spend P7.74 trillion for infrastructure between 2016 and 2022 under the PIP for 2017 to 2022.
Neda said the Duterte administration aims to complete 29 more IFPs costing P238.476 billion this year and next year.
Based on the list released by Neda, there are a total of 112 projects in the IFPs. This amounts to a total of P4.687 trillion.
A total of 12 projects are set to be completed this year worth P35.261 billion. Another 17 projects are up for completion in 2022 worth P203.22 billion.